It can be said that the majority of Hungarian citizens are familiar with the Civil Solidarity Forum (CÖF), and perhaps even know a thing or two about its goals. At the same time, much less and much less about the organization's international activities. The international NGO, which is now holding its fifth conference in Budapest on October 25, was founded in 2017. The founding president of the CÖF, László Csizmadia, spoke about the reason and circumstances of its creation in response to the questions of Attila Miklós Németh. The interview took place in 2023.

- Let's go beyond the current national border. Let's talk about international relations, the Civil Cooperation Council, EuCET.

- Already in 2012, we concluded a strategic contract with Gazeta Polska's four hundred and fifty clubs. We are preparing to renew this agreement now, on the tenth anniversary, to help restore peace between Poles and Hungarians. /…..) The point is that it became clear in 2012: the Poles are happy to come to us and cooperate with us on a civil basis. This friendship has been going on for ten years, although we had been negotiating with each other for two years before that. Then the Civil Cooperation Council was established to bring the associations of Hungarians across the border closer to us. The CET is still alive today, we just expanded it because society is also developing, and we said that it's good, there are Poles, our Hungarian associations across the border are here, we feel good, but meanwhile the world is changing, so this matter should be internationalized . That's when the idea came - a Hungarian initiative, supported by the Poles - to have a European Union Civil Cooperation meeting, to which we also invited civilians, activists and organizations from the European Union countries. /…../ This organization already has a foreign committee with Polish, French and Italian members. /…./ EuCET then acts as a council and not as a council and

it now wants to seize the civil initiatives from European civil life and put a force behind it that even the bureaucracy of the European Union cannot sweep away.

As CÖF mediated within the country, EuCET should then do the same in Europe. And there is a sequel.

"It was established that it's fine, let the people decide!" Trade unions joined our ranks on the side of the people's representation. They are also civilians, and so are the workers. Now more and more of them are coming to us, and multinational companies must accept that the best results can be achieved in internal peace.

We want to create an East-Central European community workshop with the participation of universities, professors and political analysts, which can be opinion-forming.

From this, an institution can be created later. It must be acknowledged that the common interest of the trade unions (maybe they will not be called that later) will also mean that they support families and the families of the workers beyond the borders of the company. However, they also have to help the owner of the company when he invests or develops his plant. Cooperation benefits both parties, and there is no need to protest. This is very important, because the trade unions have lived up to their fortunes and are trying to position themselves here and there on the basis of party politics. They take people out on the street, but they shouldn't be taken out on the street. There must be a national Christian, conservative union that can lead everything. This is the idea.